Samsung’s decision not to include Qi2 in the Galaxy S25 is dumb

Samsung has announced its latest smartphones, the Galaxy S25 series, which oddly enough do not come with Qi2 support. Samsung’s decision not to include Qi2 in the Galaxy S25 is dumb The post Samsung’s decision not to include Qi2 in the Galaxy S25 is dumb appeared first on Phandroid.

Jan 22, 2025 - 20:29
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Samsung’s decision not to include Qi2 in the Galaxy S25 is dumb

Samsung just announced its latest flagship phones for 2025 – the Galaxy S25 series. It’s powerful, as expected, and comes with the latest hardware in terms of chipset, display, and cameras. However, one missing feature that should have been standard is Qi2. For some reason, Samsung opted not to include Qi2 support for its Galaxy S25 phones, and we think it’s dumb.

Missed opportunity

Qi2, for those unfamiliar, is the latest wireless charging protocol by the Wireless Power Consortium. Don’t get us wrong, the Galaxy S25 series supports wireless charging like its predecessor. The difference is that it still relies on the older Qi protocol. There are benefits to using Qi2 over Qi.

For starters, Qi2 offers faster charging speeds. Qi2 goes up to 15W in wireless charging, whereas Qi maxes out at 7.5W. Some of you might argue that it’ll just take you a little bit longer to charge your device fully, but there are other benefits, too.

One other main benefit of Qi2 is the use of magnets. Apple actually lent its MagSafe technology to the WPC in the development of Qi2. This means that Qi2 Android smartphones have their version of MagSafe. Using magnets to align the wireless coils boosts charging speeds and makes it more efficient since the coils are lined up perfectly.

It also opens the door to all kinds of accessories. This includes accessories like wireless power banks, camera attachments, car mounts, etc. This could have been an entire ecosystem Samsung could have easily tapped into. Look at what Apple has done with MagSafe. This feels like a missed opportunity for Samsung.

Relying on others

Before you get too upset over the lack of Qi2 support in the Samsung Galaxy S25 series, Samsung claims that they are partnering with third-party case makers who will make Qi2-compatible cases for the phones.

This begs the question of why not just do it themselves? We get that, eventually, there will be third-party accessory makers who will hop on board the Galaxy S25 bandwagon with Qi2 cases, but Samsung could have just as easily made their own cases. The company already has several first-party phone cases, so it’s not as if it hasn’t been done before.

Either way, if you want Qi2 for your Galaxy S25, you’ll have to look elsewhere. Chances are most people will probably buy third-party cases anyway, but having first-party support is always a good thing.

So why no Qi2?

It is unclear why Samsung has been so reluctant to include support for Qi2. This dates back to the Galaxy S24 where an image suggested that Qi2 could be a feature on the phone.

Could it be that Samsung is trying to pull an Apple where they will eventually develop their own version of MagSafe/Qi2? The company has already tried creating its own take on things. This includes AI, smart home platforms, its own chipset, to name a few. However, that would seem like a massive waste of resources.

It is possible that Samsung thinks that wired charging is a better solution. But even then, it doesn’t make sense. The Galaxy S25 has similar battery sizes and charging speeds as its predecessors. If that were the case, Samsung would have upgraded the battery and charging speeds of the Galaxy S25 already.

Alternatively, it could boil down to cost. Perhaps using the magnets in Qi2 would reduce Samsung’s margins further than they would like. Either way, we think the lack of Qi2 support is a missed opportunity for Samsung. We hope the company will correct this mistake for 2026’s flagship phones.

The post Samsung’s decision not to include Qi2 in the Galaxy S25 is dumb appeared first on Phandroid.

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